Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of support available to people with Parkinson’s in Surrey Heath constituency.

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) provides a contribution towards the extra costs that may arise from a long-term disability or health condition.

Entitlement to PIP focuses on the functional impacts of a person’s health condition or disability on their daily life. It is assessed on the basis of needs arising and not on the condition itself, so is available to individuals when they meet the PIP qualifying criteria.

PIP is non-contributory, non-means-tested and can be worth up to £9,747.40 a year, tax free. Receiving a qualifying rate of PIP can act as a ‘passport’ to extra money or higher amounts of other means-tested benefits, such as Universal Credit, Employment and Support Allowance, and Housing Benefit. It can also provide access to council tax reductions and a Disabled Person's Railcard.